Happy Days Analysis

Imagine Tatooine minus its inhabitants and cool sand architecture and you get the gist of what the setting of Happy Days looks like. The stark and desolate setting serves to remind us that, ultimat...

Let's begin with the tragic. Winnie finds herself in the same situation—or perhaps worse off—at the end of the play. Winnie and Willie have no control over their situation. In fact, the play mi...

Phew! You may ask, how is it possible to be so many adjectives all at once? Well, take something like Sour Patch Kids. They are both sour and sweet, and this contradiction is exactly makes them so...

Does the name James Joyce ring a bell? He wrote a truly epic novel called Ulysses. We only mention this because Joyce was a bit of hero to Beckett. In fact, Beckett was Joyce's assistant when he fi...

At first, the title Happy Days might conjure up images of the Fonz, or cute little animals prancing and skipping through a meadow. The trick with Beckett's play is irony. After all, the play is lar...

If you like clear-cut endings then you might not be very happy with the way Happy Days ends. For one, it doesn't have a happy ending… or does it? Is Willie going to kiss Winnie or is he going to...

Beckett's writing is tricky, period. If you're not a fan, don't worry—many people don't warm to his style. But if you can crack his code, this is some of the most insightful and powerful drama yo...

Samuel Beckett was notorious for breaking with tradition. His belief that human existence was ultimately meaningless and purposeless expressed itself in his plays through his nonsensical and cyclic...

Another Happy Day (Or Is It?)Winnie begins the play thinking about the future. In fact, all her actions point toward the anticipation of the "happy day" that's to come. She grooms herself, takes he...

This play doesn't lend itself well to the three-act structure since Winnie begins the play at the point of no return: she is completely stuck. Throughout the play her actions never get her anywhere...

Apparently, Happy Days came about because Beckett's wife requested that he write a happy play. Mrs. Beckett must have been delighted with the outcome, eh? (Source.)Great minds think alike: while Be...

There isn't any actual sex in Happy Days, or romance for that matter. However, sex (or lack of sex) is an unspoken theme in Happy Days, especially as it relates to Winnie and Willie's marriage. The...

Paul Verlaine, "Colloque Sentimental" (Title of the Play)William Shakespeare, Hamlet, "Oh, woe is me, / T' have seen what I have seen, see what I see." (1.1)William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, "...